This invention relates to connectors for connecting together at least two tubular members. Connectors with which the present invention is concerned may be used for connecting together two or more pipe ends or may be used to connect, for instance, a pipe end to a pipe fitting such as a tap or some form of metering device. A connector of the present invention may be in the form of a so-called straight coupling for connecting together, for instance, two pipe ends in a linear end-to-end relationship. However, a connector of the present invention may equally be in the form of an elbow connector for connecting, for instance, two pipe ends at right angles to each other. Equally, a connector of the present invention may be in the form of a T-junction connecting, for instance, three pipe ends, two being in line and a third at right angles to the other two.
The present invention is connected with connectors for connecting together, for instance, pipes or pipe fitting made from various materials. Reference will be made hereinafter mainly to plastic pipes but it should be understood that the invention may be applied to metal pipes and also to fittings of different materials.
Known connectors are typically compression joints with a substantial numbers of parts, some of which may be easily mislaid, particularly if work is carried out at night or, generally, in poor light. There is a need for a simple connector with few parts which cannot easily be mislaid and which can be easily assembled and disassembled.
According to the present invention there is provided a connector for connecting together at least two tubular members, the connector including a body having tubular mouth portions, each for receiving one of said tubular members, at least one of said mouth portions being provided with means for connecting the body to a tubular member received in said mouth portion, said connection means comprising sealing means for sealing the body against the tubular member and securing means for preventing relative longitudinal movement between said body and said tubular member, said securing means comprising a first securing member for engagement with the tubular member and being deformable between a tubular member engaging position and a position allowing said first securing member to be readily moved along the tubular member, and a second securing member being for holding the first securing member in its tubular member engaging position, said body, said first securing member and said second securing member being adapted to coact to prevent in use, relative longitudinal movement between said first securing member and said body.
Preferably, the second securing member is in the form of a ring or collar movable longitudinally relative to the tubular member and the mouth portion in order to be located in a position wherein the first securing member is held in its mouth portion engaging position.
Preferably, the first securing member is in the form of a ring or collar which is circumferentially discontinuous over at least that part of its length which is for engaging the tubular member, thereby allowing radial deformation of said first securing member. For instance the first securing member may be circumferentially discontinuous along its entire length in which case the member is in the form of a split ring. The member may be made of material giving it a resiliency such that it will tend to recover its original shape once the deforming force is removed.
The first securing member is also preferably provided with an inwardly directed projection, or a plurality of projections, for engaging in one or more recesses located in said tubular member.
As an alternative, or as an addition, to the first securing member having a circumferentially discontinuous portion, it may be provided with means for gripping the outer surface of the tubular member.
The present invention may be realised in different ways as far as the relative locations of the body and the first and second securing members are concerned. For instance, the mouth portion may, in use, be located between the first and second securing members or the first securing member may be located between the mouth portion and the second securing member or the second securing member may be for location between the mouth portion and the first securing member.
Preferably, the first securing member has a portion for engaging the mouth portion and, extending longitudinally from said engaging portion on at least one side thereof is a stabilising portion. The stabilising portion will act to prevent forces which may be applied to the joint acting to displace the first securing member from its tubular member engaging position and, thereby allowing the connection to become disassembled.
Preferably the stabilising portion has a length at least one quarter of the external diameter of the tubular member and more preferably has a length which is at least one half of the external diameter of the tubular member.
It is frequently necessary to connect together a first plurality of tubular members and a second plurality of tubular members and, in some cases, space is at a premium and hence there is a need to provide a connector for connecting together such first and second pluralities of tubular members by a connector which is as compact as possible and, preferably, with as small a total mass as possible. This is often of great importance in applications involving nuclear radiation.
Further, in the interests of general efficiency, it is desirable that the time taken to make or to break the connection is as short as possible and this is particularly important in applications involving nuclear radiation in order to minimise the radiation dose received by the person making or breaking the connection.
Accordingly, a connecting assembly of the present invention may be for connecting together a first plurality of tubular members having parallel longitudinal axes and a second plurality of tubular members having parallel longitudinal axes which connector comprises:
(i) a plurality of connectors of the invention each having a first tubular socket at its second end, each of the first tubular sockets having parallel longitudinal axes and being adapted to receive the first plurality of tubular members and each of the second tubular sockets having parallel longitudinal axes and being adapted to receive the second plurality of tubular members so that each tubular socket accommodates one of the tubular members wherein
(ii) said connectors are connected together,
(iii) each tubular socket includes a circumferentially extending housing, of increased outer dimension compared to the outer dimension of the remainder of the socket, to accommodate a sealing member to provide a fluid tight joint between the socket and the tubular member accommodated therein,
(iv) the housing of each of the first tubular sockets is axially staggered with respect to the housing of the first tubular socket adjacent thereto, and
(v) the housing of each of the second tubular sockets is axially staggered with respect to the housing of the second tubular socket adjacent thereto.
By arranging for the housings of adjacent sockets to be staggered, the connectors can be arranged closer together so that the distance between the longitudinal axes of adjacent connectors can be minimised.
The connectors of the assembly may be arranged in a row with their first tubular sockets disposed laterally of one another and with their second tubular sockets disposed laterally of one another. If desired, the connection assembly may include more than one row of connectors superposed on each other. In this case, it is preferred for the connectors of adjacent superposed rows to be staggered so as to reduce the spacing between the connectors of adjacent rows.
Instead of providing all of the connectors with securing means, it may be sufficient to mechanically secure the plurality of tubular members together to form an assembly, by means of, for example, a strap. In this case, only selected coupling members, for example those at the extremities of the assembly, may need to be fitted with first and second securing members.
In use, it is merely necessary to push the first plurality of tubular members into the first tubular sockets of the coupling members and to push the second plurality of tubular members into the second tubular sockets of the coupling members. Preferably, each coupling member includes, between its first and second ends, a region of reduced dimension to act as a stop when the tubular members are pushed into the coupling member. It is also preferred for an end of each coupling member to terminate in a first plane and the other ends of the coupling member to terminate in a second plane. In this way, the introduction of the tubular members into the sockets at the ends of the coupling members is facilitated.